Silent Rain
by SugarLandBabyGirl
Summary: You know it’s there, you can feel the coolness of the soft taps that hit your skin and see the wet drops as they soak into your clothing, leaving a dark stain. Yet, as obvious, as its presence is you completely ignore it. After all, it’s just rain.
1. Prologue

_**DISCLAIMER: **I do no in any way, shape or form own YuYu Hakusho._

Prologue:

The Mourning Dove

A small, silent crowd stood circled around a small tent. None of the black clothed people spoke, as a shiny mahogany casket was slowly lowered into the ground. The soft, slow tapping of warm mid-summer raindrops rang out like a song into the dreary grey-clouded morning. The rhythmic tapping of the rainfall resembled a light mournfully melodious tune as it pelted softly against the plastic opaque umbrella, which successfully repelled the light drops from drenching the two dark clothed women who stood beneath the synthetic shelter.

The two women stood still, as if frozen in a life-like pose, like plastic mannequins, as the ominous silence surrounded them in a crushing grasp. The taller of the two women, had hot salty tears running down her pale face, as she hugged the shorter and younger of the two women to her side. The elder woman's body shook violently, as she tried to stifle her sobs, while keeping the younger girl plastered to her side in a crushing grip. The younger girl returned her mother's hug with her own, while soothingly rubbing a comforting hand over the brown haired woman's shoulders. The young sandy haired girl clenched her watery eyes together in heartbreak, as the beautiful mahogany casket disappeared into the ground. The brown haired woman let out a sharp, stifled scream, which was muffled behind a white tearstained handkerchief and her trembling hand. The young sandy haired girl's eyes flashed open at her mother's cry, revealing shiny, waterlogged light aqua irises, just as her mother collapsed, lifeless onto the green outdoor carpet.

"Kazuhiro-san! Leinoni!" A course of multilingual outcries resounded throughout the graveyard. As the elder woman collapsed, her aqua-eyed daughter's face became one of unsure panic and her head snapped towards the crowd looking for some help, just as four people ran to the fallen woman's side.

"Leinoni? Come on little sis, we need to get you home before you catch pneumonia." A brunette-haired man spoke quietly, as he kneeled down beside his younger sister and scared niece. With a gentle, yet firm hand, the American male pried the mother and daughter out of each other's tight grasps, before carefully hoisting his younger sister up into his arms and walking out of the graveyard. The other male and female of American heritage slowly followed their son and daughter, leaving the young silent girl with the other woman.

The sandy haired girl struggled meagerly to get back to her unconscious mother, before a black haired woman, clearly of Japanese heritage pulled the silently crying girl into her arms, while whispering comforting words to her in Japanese. Slowly, the young girl stopped struggling, yet the tears continued to fall freely from her eyes, as she watched as her mother was carried away and placed into the back seat of a black car. The silent aqua-eyed girl glanced up at her Godmother, who looked down and met the young girl's sad, questioning gaze.

"Don't you worry, little Faline, they're taking your mother back home." The black haired woman spoke quietly in Japanese, while hugging her Goddaughter to her side. Faline had never met her mother's family and they had never met her, simply because they lived in America, Los Angeles California, to be precise. Living so far away and never bothering to visit, the Johnson family knew nothing about Faline or her condition. The young sandy-haired girl had not said a word since they had arrived two days ago and Leinoni had been so distraught over the sudden loss of her husband, that she could not even tell her elder brother and parents her own name. Let alone why her daughter was always silent and gave them confused looks whenever they spoke to her.

Some family they were, the Japanese woman's hazel gaze hardened as she watched the car pull away with Faline's unconscious mother, uncle and grandparents in it. It was sad that in all of the fourteen years since Faline had been alive, her uncle and grandparents had not even known that the young girl had been born mute and did not know a single word of English and now they had driven off without so much as a glance back. That kind of ghastly treatment made Hamasaki Aika quite angry, yet for the sake of her Goddaughter, she remained as cheerful as possible.

"Come on, how about we go to my place and get a change of clothes. Then we can watch TV and eat some Ice-cream, how does that sound?" Aika asked with a small smile, while tenderly tucking a piece of the sandy-haired girls' long stray bang behind her ear. Faline met her Godmother's soft gaze, before silently nodding her head in approval. Aikas' smile brightened, before hugging the blonde haired girl in a tight motherly embrace. Walking side-by-side out of the graveyard, Aika decided that comforting familiarity would be best for Faline, since Leinoni was in the care of her family. Faline was still shaken and confused with the sudden death of her father and appearance of her previously unknown American relatives, being alone with the three Americans and a distraught mother would only cause things to get worse.

'_Things will be alright, Faline. I promise. Leinoni will calm down soon and things will eventually smoothen out.'_ The dark haired woman silently promised to the voiceless young girl, as she led the heartbroken and confused young girl back to her small, quaint home. As the two women slowly made their way back to Aikas' apartment, the drearily grey clouds slowly parted and a few rays of sun lit up the sky as the melodious rain continued to fall.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One:

Life Goes On

"Faline-chan, it's time for school. Come on, I even made your favorite! If you don't eat it I'll be depressed and insulted, Faline-chan!" A gentle motherly voice cooed softly next to the peacefully slumbering teen's ear. The warm coral pink blanked bed dipped down, as another person lay on the bed. Making the sleeping girl rollover and turn her back to the intruder, in a silent sign of refusal to get up.

Aika sighed in an overly dramatic and entirely childish way, before crawling completely onto the twin size bed to gently shake the stubborn teenager's shoulders in a vain attempt to awaken the young blonde haired girl. When that plan failed, the opaque-haired woman decided to bounce the bed.

"Faline-chan, beauty sleep is _wonderful_ and most need as much as possible, but you're already _too beautiful_ and _don't need this much rest_!" Aikas childish whiny voice continued, while she continued to try to make the young girl budge from beneath her soft pink and white blanket cocoon.

A soft almost silent sigh was heard, seconds before Faline pulled the sheets down beneath her chin, giving her sisterly-Godmother a hazy-eyed frown. Aika instantly pulled her face into a childish pout at the look. "You know that look is so unbecoming of a little fawn like you, Faline Nila-Laine Kazuhiro."

At those words Faline's frown turned into a soft sleepy smile, before she pulled her sleepy body out from under the covers and rolled over to lay her head on her Godmother's knee. The elder dark-haired woman smiled softly and gently brushed her fingers through her Goddaughter's sandy hair for a few peaceful moments. Faline had been living with her for over two months now. After Aika had insisted that Leinoni take a break from work and go visit her family, Faline would've been with her mother but unfortunately she had school.

Aika glanced down at the young girl with a soft loving gaze only to meet gloomy aqua-eyes. "It's alright little fawn, your mom will be home this weekend and when she gets here we'll take her to that new nightclub-restaurant thing and have a girl's night out. What do you think about that, sound fun?" Aika asked with a mischievous smile, knowing all-too-well that Faline missed her mother something fierce, so she had been working over time trying to keep the young girls mind off her mother and her late father. It had been half a year since Dan-san's death, but to the two girls it still hurt as if he had just passed away.

Aika was no stranger to the loss of loved ones either, as she had learned about death at a very young age. Losing her mother to cancer when she was five and her father at seventeen from an aneurism, she had been an only child so she was alone, until she met a two months pregnant Leinoni at the food market. They had instantly become the best of friends and when little Faline was born she had been given the honor of being the infant's Godmother.

"Well, little fawn it's time for you to rise, shine, and grace the world with your radiance." Aika sing-songed with a wide smile, while grabbing a hold of Faline's hands and pulling herself and the still sleepy girl off the bed, down the hall and into the kitchen. When Aika released her hands, Faline took a seat at the kitchen bar, where a full plate of fresh fruit, warm cinnamon toast and a glass of water sat. Aika took a seat across from the young sandy-haired girl with a plate of sausage, bacon, raspberry jam, buttered toast and a glass of orange juice in front of her. The two girls ate in silence, well with the exception of Aika's morning ritual of karaoke-like humming of the songs "Wild Thing" and "Hit Me with Your Best Shot."

After breakfast was finished, Faline showered and ready for school and Aika dressed in her dark gray pinstripe business suit, they slid into Aika's snowy-white Toyota Camry and backed out of the driveway. Less than ten minutes later, they arrived at Faline's school. With a hug and a wave, Aika pulled away leaving Faline to her teenage duty of attending High School classes.

Faline was probably one of the few fifteen-year olds in the world who actually enjoyed going to school to truly learn something. However, despite her fondness for learning, she, like all of her piers disliked taking tests and pop quizzes. All-in-all, she was a typical student who made average grades and got into the usual amount of trouble with her friends.

"Faline-chan, over here!" A cheery voice shouted, trying to be heard over the noisy clamor of numerous teenagers.

Looking in the direction of where she heard her name being called. Faline saw a short girl jumping on her heels while trying to be seen over her fellow taller students. The girl was waving her hands around frantically, while trying to catch the sandy haired girl's attention and escape from the cage of human bodies that separated her from her friend.

When the smiling girl managed to squeeze her way through the thick mass of high school students, she instantly ran towards her blonde haired friend, her waist length curls flared out behind her like a wildfire. It was dye of course and the curls were made from hair gel and a curling iron. Her bright orange irises were fake too the unnatural color a product of colored contacts.

"Phew," The orange-eyed teen sighed in relief, while haphazardly leaning half of her body weight on Faline's right shoulder. The silent blonde haired girl smiled brightly and softly pat her panting friend on the back in a consoling manner. After a minute of catching her breath, the red-haired girl stood her full height, but didn't release Faline from her grasp.

Instead the red-haired girl wrapped her arm around the smiling girl's waist and laid her head on the taller teen's shoulder. Turning her head slightly up so she could look at her friend's face, the flame haired girl smiled, if possible, even wider, "Seiki-chan missed Faline-chan so much, while Seiki-chan was on vacation!" The smaller girl wined pathetically, still clutching Faline in a breath-hitching embrace.

Faline frowned slightly, but returned the embrace, only not as tightly as her smaller friend. Seiki let out a high pitched squeal of delight, and pulled the taller girl even closer to her side. "Seiki-chan will _never_ leave Faline-chan, to go away with Seiki-chan's _evil_ family ever again!" The smaller teen proclaimed loudly, while nuzzling her cheek into Faline's shoulder.

"Ugh, Seiki-chan if you don't stop squeezing Faline-chan to death, you won't be able to hug her anymore." A bored, lazy voice spoke up from behind the two girls. As a tall spiky black haired girl with calm brown eyes, walked up to the opposite shoulder of the blonde haired girl and fell into step with the two shorter girls.

Seiki let out a dramatic gasp of horror, but instead of releasing the blonde she pulled her closer and tightened her grip even further. "Seiki-chan would _never_ harm her Faline-chan, Yuukan-chan!" The smaller girl spoke with a jealous sneer, directed solely towards the spiky haired girl.

The spiky haired girl just rolled her eyes in annoyance and sighed, "Whatever, you possessive lesbian midget."

Seiki huffed angrily, her cheeks puffing up in her fury, as the black haired teen just gave the smaller girl a bored look. Surprisingly the smaller girl released Faline from her hold and stomped over to the tallest teen. Her orange eyes blazed in rage, as she yelled, "Seiki-chan is not a midget! Yuukan-chan is a jealous she-man!"

Yuukan rolled her eyes again, "Whatever you say, midget." Before reaching out and slightly shoving the smaller girl to the side, away from Faline and herself. The dark haired girl slumped her shoulders and looked down at the small blonde at her side. Her usual hazy bored eyes now intensely alert, "You know, I have to hand it to you Faline-chan. Not many people can stand to be around that midget, especially when she takes a _special _liking to them. I don't think she's ever been that possessive of anyone, but you."

Faline just smiled, shaking her head slightly, as if to say "it's fine." Seiki had stomped off with her arms crossed and nose stuck in the air, leaving the two taller girls to walk themselves to their first class.

Yuukan frowned slightly and gently gripped Faline's shoulder, making the blonde haired girl torn to face her. Faline looked utterly confused and worried, but Yuukan held up her hand to silence the mute questions. "Listen, Faline-chan I know that you don't want to hurt Seiki-chan's feelings, but you shouldn't let her take liberties with your kindness and acceptance of her… _unusual_ behavior, which I _know_ she does, frequently. Don't let her push you into situations that you aren't comfortable with, because I know that you aren't attracted to girls."

Faline nodded her head in silent understanding, but the miserable look didn't leave her face. Yuukan immediately took notice of her depressive mood and pulled the blonde-haired girl into a rather rough one armed hug. "Don't worry about it Faline-chan, I'll deal with Seiki-chan and her tantrum." _'And her handsy treatment of you, in front of everyone at school no less.'_ The taller teen added silently, while cracking a lazy grin and mildly pushing Faline into their first class of the day.

Due to a teacher's meeting, the students only had to go to school half a day. All of the students were beyond thrilled, especially Yuukan and Seiki. Yuukan found school to be nothing but a waist of time, while Seiki disliked school because it disrupted her tanning bed and spa time and Faline was happy because getting out early meant that she could spend extra time with her Godmother and friends at Aika's office.

"Well, I'd say that was the absolute best day at school I've ever had. No homework, no shitty-ass cafeteria food and no candy-ass Algebra teacher." Yuukan sighed with a lazy smirk as she, Seiki and Faline walked along the sidewalk of a busy highway.

"Yeah, Seiki-chan totally agrees with Yuukan-chan! Ishiki-sensei is a total uke, Seiki-chan thinks that Tsuru-sensei is Ishiki-sensei's seme." The small redhead squealed with a scandalous giggle. Many of the passerby's glared incredulously at the small orange-eyed teen's indecent words, but the girl just walked on ignoring the evil looks.

Seiki had a gently hold of Faline's right hand, as she practically skipped along the sidewalk. After being roughly pulled into the girls restroom at school and having Yuukan give her a fierce tongue-lashing for acting on her feelings for Faline in front of the whole school population. Seiki decided to only hold hands with the sweet blonde haired girl while they were in public. She didn't really like the idea of not being able to openly express her feelings and she didn't care what other people thought of her choice of a partner. However, she did understand that Faline would be made fun of and probably shunned from society if Seiki continued to show her obvious affections for the love-timid blonde. So she decided that she would only be herself while it was just the three of them.

"Gee, Seiki-chan, think you could say that any louder? I don't think the people in America heard you." Yuukan sighed with an eye roll. "Besides, Faline-chan has successfully put a strawberry to shame." The spiky haired teen snickered while lightly nudging the blushing girl.

"Oh! Faline-chan, that's such a lovely color!" Seiki swooned, making Faline's blush deepen.

Embarrassed by Seiki's reaction and previous perversion, Faline bent her head forwards so her sandy hair fell into her face, successfully blocking her flushed countenance from her friends and the world. This only caused Seiki to smile and giggle, which in turn caused Faline's blush to deepen even further.

"Alright, Seiki-chan that's enough. We don't want Faline-chan to faint from a blood-rush, now do we?" Yuukan halfheartedly chastised the bouncing ginger-eyed girl, with a mischievous smirk.

The flame-haired girl wined pathetically, but reluctantly let it go. Deciding that a major subject change was in order, Yuukan struck up a conversation about what the three would do for the weekend. This conversation successfully deterred Seiki's perverted mind and also eased the discomfited Faline back into her delicate comfort zone.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

Soundless Scream

After two and a half hours, with two hours of that being spent in a medium sized office alone and without Aika's bubbly yet mature presence, the three teenage girls decided to leave and let the older woman tend to her meeting, without distractions. They wanted to stay and spend more time with the business woman, but since she was stuck in an important meeting and they were bored with just playing on the computer and bossing around Aika's snobby attendant. They left a message with the attendant, saying that they had gone home and not to worry about them.

"So, your mom's plane isn't supposed to land here until sometime after 5pm this weekend right?" Yuukan asked idly, with an inquisitive eyebrow raised showing that she was more interested in the answer than her outward appearance showed.

Faline nodded a yes and a broad smile broke out over her lips, her eyes glittering in happiness at the mention her mother's long-overdue return. Two months and two weeks, that's how long her mother had been gone and it was far, far too long in Faline's opinion. Her mother was originally only going to be gone for two to three weeks, not over two months. Faline would have thought that her mother had left her for good, if not for the regular phone calls from America. Apparently, Faline's American Grandmother had insisted on her reclusive daughter staying for longer than two or three weeks and she had agreed.

"Well, I guess that means we'll have to hijack you away from Aika-san that morning." The spiky haired girl sighed tiredly, as if just thinking about snatching the silent blonde away from her protective Godmother was a tough job. Which in fact it would be, Aika's protectiveness of her Goddaughter rivaled Seiki's possessiveness of the silent blonde. Sometimes, their over obsessiveness of Faline was a royal pain.

Crossing her arms behind her head in a thoughtful manner, Yuukan began to think out loud, "Seiki-chan should be awake at 7 and I'll be up at 8. So, we'll abduct you at 9 and take you back a little before 3pm." With a satisfied nod of her head at her faultless kidnapping plan, Yuukan turned her head to look her two friends and asked, "How does that sound?"

"Seiki-chan _loves_ it!" The auburn haired girl squealed, pulling Faline into a squeezing embrace, while jumping up and down in her happiness. Faline smiled, while trying not to loose her balance, as the smaller teen bounced around with her. Surprisingly Seiki had a very firm grasp, despite her petite sized body.

"Right, so you both agree that we're kidnapping _you,_" Yuukan pointed at Faline, before continuing. "at 9am this Saturday."

Both girls nodded their heads with a smile, before a sudden slightly muffled scream shattered the moment. Seiki sighed loudly, before releasing Faline and digging through her school bag, retrieving a vivid lime colored cell phone from its depths. The scream was Seiki's chosen ring tone. Seiki frowned when she saw who was calling her and interrupting her time with her Faline-chan.

With an irritable growl, the redhead harshly punched the talk button and brought the phone to her ear with an angered frown. "What do you want? Seiki-chan is _busy_." The small girl all but growled out, while emphasizing the word "busy" with a real growl. "No! Seiki-chan doesn't want to!" She screamed after a moment of silence. "But, Seiki-chan is _busy_ right now!" Seiki whined second later, her anger still there, but sadness the most dominant of her emotions.

"_Fine_, _alright_, Seiki-chan _understands_! Seiki-chan _will be there_!" Seiki growled out through clenched teeth a couple minutes later. Without so much as a "goodbye" or "to hell with you" Seiki harshly snapped the phone shut. Throwing the lime green cell back into her bag, Seiki slowly looked up to meet Faline's questioning and worried aqua depths.

Faline had never heard or seen the smaller girl so angry. It was frightening to witness firsthand. Faline had only ever seen her petite scarlet-haired friend angry when she and Yuukan were fighting. But they had never fought over something that upset the smaller of her two friends this much.

"Seiki-chan has to go…" Seiki sighed sadly, the toe of her black baby-doll shoes scratching across the pavement. "Seiki-chan's evil family wants Seiki-chan home to do _chores_!" Seiki accused say family, making a disgusted face.

"Ugh." Yuukan huffed, a scowl making its appearance on her calm features. "Guess, that means we better go then, sounded like you got your ass chewed off."

Yuukan pat her blonde friend on the shoulder and muttered a "see you later, Faline-chan." Before she grabbed a hold of Seiki's shoulder and pushed the reluctant girl down the sidewalk, saying, "You know Seiki-chan can't even find her own _house_ without a text message reminding her which _street_ she lives on."

"Hey!" Said auburn-haired girl yelled loudly, clearly insulted. Suddenly the shorter girl began to struggle in an attempt to escape from her much taller and stronger friend's grip, while slinging insults and curses like an upturned lawnmower. Most of her chosen vocabulary was vulgar enough to make a sailor blush and stare in shock.

Faline just raised her hand in a wave, speechless. _'Well, that was certainly an interesting and unexpected turn of events.' _The mute girl thought to herself in puzzlement. Since when did Yuukan offer to help Seiki get back to her house? Yuukan to sit back, watch and later tease the smaller girl about her lack of direction.

'_Maybe Seiki-chan really is in trouble this time.' _ With a weary sigh, Faline ran her hand through her tresses, smoothing her long sandy hair away from her face and eyes. _'What to do, what to do?' _Faline mused as she trekked slowly closer to her Godmother's house; she still had a few hours left before Aika got off from work. There was no homework for today, so she didn't have to go back to her Godmother's house and do that. Her room was clean and the only dirty clothes she had were the ones she was wearing. There really wasn't anything left to do.

Faline was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice that her legs had begun to move forward to take her somewhere. Fifteen minutes later, Faline still hadn't noticed that she had moved from a city sidewalk to a peaceful suburb. When her legs finally stopped moving Faline's eyes snapped back into focus and she gawked, open mouthed at where her subconscious had taken her. The sandy haired teen was standing in front of a dark brown and crème colored house, there was a small front porch which was attached to the two car garage. There was a chain link fence bordering a small backyard that had a small grey stone water fountain.

Faline smiled halfheartedly, she was home. Walking up the familiar concrete path, Faline began to dig through her schoolbag. Finding her extra set of keys to her house, she slid the key into the lock and turned it. Hearing a soft click she pulled the key from the lock, pushed open the door and walked into her dark and empty home.

Flipping on the lights as she moved through each room, reliving memories both old and not. Faline finally came to a stop at the living room, spotting a mahogany bookshelf in the furthest corner of the room she walked over to it and began to gaze over all of the picture frames that occupied each individual shelf. The pictures seemed to be setup in a chronological order. The first picture on the top shelf was a photo of two young adults; a long brown haired girl with sparkling blue eyes had a large smile on her face as a dark haired boy with kind brown eyes held her around the waist. It was a picture of her parents a few weeks after they had started dating, or so her mother and father had told her.

The next picture showed the young couple at a theme park, where Faline's father had proposed to her mother. Her father had told her that he had actually lost the ring that day on one of the rides, so he had to convince the workers to help him find the ring. In the photo her father was soaking wet and down on one knee, showing that he had lost the ring on a water ride. It had been a miracle that they had even found that small silver band diamond ring, but her father was determined to give her mother that ring.

The next picture was of them standing in front of an altar being married, which was followed by a picture of them standing in front of a purple sunset at the beach in Hawaii, where they had their honeymoon. The third shelf was different pictures of her mother in different stages of her pregnancy. Aika was also in several of those photos, as well her father. The fourth shelf was a family photo of a newborn Faline in her father's arms, the dark haired man was smiling with such soft and loving eyes that Faline felt silent tears run down her face. In every picture that all three of them were together, Faline saw that her father always had that soft look of love in his eyes. He had truly loved both her and her mother so much.

The next shelf and shelves that followed were of Faline in different stages of her life, from a crying newborn to a toothless crawling infant to a smiling fourteen year old. But that was where the photo's stopped. The year that her father died was the year that things took a drastic change. No more photo's had been taken since, it was as if their life had took a permanent halt.

Faline reached up and gently grabbed the only recent family picture and hugged in to her chest. She still hadn't stopped crying. Faline couldn't understand why it still hurt so much, everyone had said that time would soothe the ache. But time was only making her heart break even more. Every time she did something, she always looked to her side to see her father's smiling face, but there was only empty space.

It just wasn't fair! Her mouth opened in a soundless scream of pure heartbreak as she collapsed to her knees. Her forehead hitting the smooth beige carpeted floor. Sometimes Faline wished that she had a voice. She wanted to scream and actually be heard for once. How many times since her father had passed away had she screamed in silence, wanting her internal pain to be heard and felt by someone other than herself? She just wanted a release. A life in silence and mute pain was hardly a life at all in her opinion.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

The Fragile Line between Life and Death

Faline spent the walk to Aika's house in a somber calm of reflection. Only the rhythmic tapping of her shoes having any recognition to her unaware senses. Her face and eyes gazed downward at her white shoe-clad feet in an unseen daze. Her silky dark flaxen tresses fell gracefully around her shoulders, veiling her features from view. The world around her passed by as a blotchy haze of indistinguishable colors, the thunderous sounds of the busy city never reached her as she passed through it. There was no acknowledgment or second glance from any she passed. She was just simply there, merely another in a world of countless.

Numerous thoughts flooded her mind in massive swells and images flicked to life like a light bulb meeting unstable electricity, as her feet instinctually led her back to her Godmother's home. A mental overflow of long since forgotten knowledge swept through her mind. Her fragile grip on reality dwindled with every robotic step. Her slender fingers and hands had visibly paled to a shade hazardously akin to chalk from her unyielding grip on her only latch to reality and sanity. The shiny oaken picture frame she clutched possessively to her heart.

Unheeding of the world around her, Faline stepped off the jagged sidewalk edge. Only for the tip of her shoe to catch on a groove in the stone and send her body forward with a sudden harsh jolt, which caused her to snap back to reality with a surprised intake of breath. In a frantic attempt to keep her face from hitting the pavement, she threw out her left hand to brace herself from the impact of her fall.

The collision was almost instantaneous, though it seemed like forever Faline still could not prepare her body for the ruthless contact that followed. She felt the rip of her delicate skin and heard the sharp snap of her wrist bone as it collided with the ground. Immediately a wave of excruciating pain washed over her in a ripple of intense searing heat that shot through her entire body. Her form jolted wildly before stiffening as if paralyzed. A wave of gut wrenching nausea and dizziness rolled over her senses. Faline's vision started to blacken and it took every ounce of willpower she possessed to force herself to stay conscious, but she was quickly losing the battle.

A cold sweat covered her body and hot tears fell freely from her eyes as she peered around her in search for her family portrait. Spotting the picture frame a few feet out in front of her, she forced her body to move forward as fast as possible before the precious item was lost and she no longer aware of her surroundings. She lost her footing to another harsh wave of dizziness, fell to her knees beside the picture and swiftly snatched the wooden frame from the ground.

Suddenly everything became all too clear as a horrified scream pierced though her momentarily muted hearing, moments before the sound of a honking car horns and squealing tires blared to life. She snapped her head to the left only to see a white blur headed towards her. Her eyes flew open in terror, but her body refused to move as blackness finally overpowered her vision and she knew no more.

"Oh my god, is she alive?" A hysteric female voice shrieked causing Faline's eyes to flutter open from the piercing noise. A series of amazed gasps rang out around her motionless form as her hazy waterlogged aqua gaze slowly drifted around to each blurry face that stood above her.

Unfamiliar faces, every single one of them were strangers. Even if she could not see their faces clearly, she could tell by their voices that she had never seen them before. Faline had a good memory, especially when it came to voices. Being born mute she learned from a young age to identify people by their voices. She could identify people better by their voice than their face. There wasn't one person she had every heard speak that she couldn't recognize. Everyone had a unique voice that was singularly theirs. It was something she had a deep fascination with.

"Can you hear me, miss?" A velvety soft almost feminine voice asked, as a warm gentle hand stroked her brow. Faline's waterlogged gaze moved upwards when the voice had come from. A haze of vivid colors caused her to blink. It was almost like gazing directly into the sun. When her eyes opened again she could just barely make out a feminine face framed by long scarlet hair.

The person supporting her head in their lap smiled tenderly as her eyes began to focus on him. Had she not been half way unconscious she would have gaped at the beautiful male above her. He was quite possibly the most gorgeous human being she had ever seen. He could not honestly be human. Not with that face, with those eyes. Such vibrance, such life, such intelligence sparkled in those emerald pools. Locking gazes with the male above her was dangerous. She felt like she could drown in their unfathomable depths.

"You're going to be all right, miss. An ambulance is on its way…" The red-haired male continued to speak trying to soothe the injured girl, but Faline couldn't make out any of his words. She only felt the comforting vibrations of his soft tenor pulsate though her entire body. The voice it was so calming, she wished that he would never stop. Slowly her heavy eyelids began to close, her body finally surrendering itself to the bliss of unconsciousness once more.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four:

Whispers in the Dark

Faline lie eerily stiff on a hospital bed, the repetitive beep of the heart monitor the only noise in the sterile off-white room. The heavy aroma of the hospital was choking and caused most of the small room's silent occupants to feel claustrophobic. However, no one had left since they had first been notified.

Seiki, Yuukan and Aika sat or stood next to the bed, their emotions nearly identical. Seiki was still openly crying, though she kept her head bowed so no one could see her silent tears. She sat on a stool next to the bed. Her body was slouched in an uncomfortable position as her hand quivered as she clutched Faline's, silently willing the unconscious girl to wake up. Yuukan sat in a light blue chair that was situated next to the bed on the opposite side of Seiki. Usually she would have complained about the uncomfortable chair, but Yuukan felt like if she even dared to stand her knees would give way. Yuukan couldn't even begin to fathom how Aika was still standing.

Aika stood next to the open window, her water-logged brown eyes dark and gloomy. She had been staring out the window at nothing for almost the entire time she had been there. A quick sidelong glace at the clock told her that had been almost three and a half hours ago. A ragged sigh, escaped through her trembling lips as she worried a cream and beige heart shaped stone that hung from her neck.

She was still debating on whether or not she should call Leinoni and tell her about the accident. She knew that Leinoni would probably hit the floor in a dead faint if she called her and told her that her only child was in the hospital, with a broken wrist and in what the Doctors called a light coma. They had said that Faline's body and mind had taken quite a shock from the broken bone and from then nearly being run over. Her body hadn't known how to react, so it shut down. The Doctor had assured her that Faline would only be comatose for a day or two, three at the most. However, it was unusual for someone to slip into any type of coma when there was such little damage done. The only answer the Doctors could come up with was that it was something psychological and nothing they could treat.

Aika could only assume that it had something to do with the picture the doctors had to pry from her hands. The picture was now sitting on the bedside table. She thanked every God and deity she knew that Faline had not actually been ran over by that car. People had a bad tendency of driving well over the speed limit there. If she had been hit then- Aika quickly shoved those thoughts from her mind. Faline was alive and had no injuries that couldn't be healed with time.

Aika turned and looked at the two familiar girls that sat by the bed, their heads were bent forward and she couldn't see their faces or the tears. Glancing over to the other side of the room she quietly observed the scarlet haired teen that had been with Faline when the ambulance had come. He was just a kid. Well, more like a young adult, she corrected. He had to be at least nineteen-years old. He was rather effeminate with his long crimson hair and deep sparkling emerald eyes, which were far too intelligent for someone his age.

Aika silently walked over to the boy, who looked up at hearing her approach. She flashed him a small smile, her attempts to hide the sadness a failure. "Thank you, for staying with her and calling the ambulance. I really appreciate it and I'm sure Faline feels the same. I really don't think I can thank you enough for what you've done for her and… for me." Aika spoke softly, her fingers still worrying the stone around her neck.

"There's no need to thank me ma'am, I just did what anyone would have if they were in the same situation. I'm just glad that she will be all right." The red-haired boy replied with a soft comforting smile. Aika blinked. Somehow, just hearing his voice and seeing that reassuring smile of his calmed all her fears.

"Oh, I apologize I haven't even introduced myself or asked for your name." Aika let out an embarrassed halfhearted laugh. She gave a small bow and properly introduced herself. "I'm Hamasaki Aika." The scarlet haired boy smiled. "I'm Minamino Shuichi; it's a pleasure to meet you Hamasaki-san."

"Likewise, Minamino-san," Aika requited politely, while the two teenage girls watched on in silence. Their eyes were narrowed in suspicion. Neither Yuukan nor Seiki liked the odd vibes that the older teen boy was giving off. Despite the fact that he seemed nice enough and was there to help Faline in her time of need. However, his aura had an unnatural feel to it and his eyes…

Those emerald irises were far too guarded and intelligent for a normal nineteen-year-old. Yuukan was good at cracking through people's defenses, but his… His was a completely different story. She couldn't even begin to find a weakness in his eyes. She was reluctantly willing to give him a chance because he had helped Faline. But one glance at Seiki told Yuukan that the smaller girl wasn't even about to trust him or let him near Faline.

Seiki, despite her single-mindedness was quite in tuned with human auras. She could tell things about people almost instantly, as long as she wasn't too emotionally attached to them. Something about this, Minamino Shuichi guy unsettled Seiki and Yuukan had to admit that he unnerved her too. It was his unnatural calmness and those exceedingly guarded and intelligent eyes that threw her off. He was a mystery, a Rubix Cube that no one could ever solve.

The three women watched as Shuichi left with a soft, polite bid of goodbye. Aika sighed tiredly, still fingering the stone around her neck as she took a seat below the windowsill. The cool breeze on her face seemed to lull her into a tranquil, almost sleepy state. Several minutes later all three of the un-hospitalized women were in a deep state of unconsciousness.

As she slept, Faline dreamed. She awakened in a dark, empty void. The blackness that surrounded her was so dark that she couldn't even see her hand, which she held mere centimeters in front of her eyes. Faline dared to move forward in search of something, anything to shed light in the darkness that had captured her. But after what felt like several minutes of walking she stopped. There was nothing in the void with her and it truly was a vast void because even her footsteps were nonexistent. The darkness had seemingly blinded and deafened her.

She felt so helpless. The darkness, the silence, she hated it. She was born without a voice, but losing her hearing and eyesight was far more terrifying than anything her nightmares had ever shown her. And, the worst part of it all was the fact that she was completely alone. Perhaps she had grown too accustomed to having people around her to lean on, to support and shield her. It was so childish for a fifteen-year-old to be so needing of others, but she wasn't mentally ready to let go.

Carefully she kneeled down, hoping to touch the floor. The solidness, she hoped would help calm her nerves. But when her fingers failed to feel or touch anything even remotely solid she froze. Again she tried, but the feeling of nothing greeted her a second time. Shaking her head in disbelief she let her shaking feet give way to her bodyweight. Her body stopped as if there was a solid floor beneath her, but still her naked skin felt nothing. She just stopped. There was no pain, no nothing. It felt… her eyes went wide when she realized that there was no feeling, it was just oblivion.

Jumping to her feet in alarm and determination Faline ran into the vast realm of nothingness. She was scared, but determined to awaken from this awful dream. She ran for an unnamed amount of time, before she just couldn't run anymore. She felt no pain from aching muscles and her breathing was normal, but she was mentally exhausted. She let herself fall. Her back hit nothing of course, but when her body stilled and she lay flat on her back she let her eyelids slide shut. Darkness was darkness, but the black she saw behind closed eyes was much more comforting than the void she saw when her eyes were opened.

Suddenly she felt a soft tickle on her skin and a soft whisper touched her ears. Faline's eyes slowly opened in question at the familiar feeling. It felt like the breeze of a cool spring morning, but she didn't see how that was possible. The blackness that surrounded her made it impossible for her to feel or see anything. She shivered as the feeling came again, only the whisper as louder this time. She sat up and strained her ears to hear the whisper again.

Slowly the whisper became a murmur and she began to catch a few scattered words. "_No_ _need…_ _thank… anyone… same situation… glad… be all right… Minamino Shuichi…" _Faline didn't know what it was about the voice, but it seemed to slowly make the void around her dissipate. The voice sounded so familiar, but she couldn't place it or the name. As she began to drift off into a peaceful slumber she heard the voice speak again, only this time all the words were clear. "_You'll be all right. Rest and recover well, little fawn…_"


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five:

From Emerald Eyes

His keen demonic hearing heard the sharp snap of a bone breaking, seconds later the scent of human blood and salty tears penetrated his sensitive nose. He stiffened instinctually, expecting a high-pitched scream to pierce the air and his ears. But nothing came. Abruptly, the scream he had been expecting erupted in his mind like an explosion. His watery eyes snapped shut in pain. It felt like his skull was being slowly and mercilessly ripped apart. _'This… it-it isn't natural… something is… something's wrong!' _

It was the only coherent thought he could muster as the pain coursed through his mind. It wasn't the worst pain he had ever felt, but it scored high enough. The worst part was that through the screaming pain in his mind, he could feel everything that the girl felt. Her pain was unimaginable and not just her broken bone, her internal pain was massive. Whoever the girl was she needed help, immediately. She was dying slowly, but surely she was fading from her mortal body.

He didn't have time to think on why this girl was dying or why and how exactly he could hear her screaming and feel her fragile life slipping away. He'd figure out that part at a later date, he reassured himself before he forced his watering eyes open to look for the young girl. Spotting her within the crowd was not as hard as it probably should have been. She seemed to stick out like a sore thumb to him. Perhaps it was just the fact that he wasn't completely human that made it easy to find her or maybe it had something to do with her voice in his mind, where two already resided.

A young girl, no older than fifteen was stumbling into the middle of the busy street. Her long dark flaxen hair swayed around her, with her unstable equilibrium. She soon lost her footing and fell to her knees beside a wooden object he could only guess to be a picture. Suddenly a woman's horrified scream pierced though his hearing, literally seconds before the sound of a honking car horn and the sharp squealing of tires hit his sensitive ears. Kurama could only watch on in a frozen vexed daze as the girl snapped her head to the left to see a white car headed straight towards her, again he expected a scream of terror, but again she made no noise aloud. However, he heard her terrified scream within his mind.

What happened next almost caused his heart to stop beating and he was sure he had stopped breathing all together for a few moments. The second the girl saw the car coming at her, her body fell lifelessly to the ground as the car narrowly swerved to miss her crumpled form by millimeters. He let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding, before he ran to the unconscious girl and removed her limp form from the middle of the street.

A crowd swiftly surrounded them, as he called an ambulance and looked her over for any more less obvious damage. Her wrist was clearly broken, as the swelling was immediate and her palms and knees were scraped up and bleeding. That was minor damage at the most, her wrist seemed to be the only broken bone she had and thankfully he couldn't find any other injuries on her person. He gave the picture frame that she was clutching desperately to her chest a curious glance, but ignored his natural inquisitiveness to check her over again.

Kurama faintly heard a woman ask, or rather heard her shriek if the girl was alive. He truly wished that the crowd would stop talking, it was adding on to his already pounding headache. But he said nothing, knowing it wouldn't do him any good to voice his inner pain. They couldn't even begin to understand what was wrong with him at any rate. Seconds later the woman got her answer, as hazy waterlogged aqua eyes slowly drifted around to gaze at the crowd that stood around her fallen form, before those hooded aqua irises landed on him.

"Can you hear me, miss?" He asked softly, soothingly so he wouldn't rouse his headache or startle the injured girl, absentmindedly stroking her sweaty brow. He could tell, just by the look in her watery eyes that she was confused and scared. She had every right to be, he reasoned. She had just almost died. Kurama watched with soft eyes as the girl blinked after she stared at him for a few moments, when she opened her eyes again he smiled and had to withhold a chuckle at the awe and wonder that took over her features as she got a better look at him.

"You're going to be all right, miss. An ambulance is on its way. You'll be at the hospital and fixed up soon." He reassured her as she began to slip back into unconsciousness. When her eyes closed he still continued to speak to her, instinctively knowing that his voice was calming her. As he sat there with the young girl in his arms he couldn't help but catch her scent. She smelled like a forest in the midst of spring. His sensitive nose caught the unmistakable scent of fresh earth, a fresh breeze perfumed lightly by the scent of blooming honeysuckle and sweet grass. Kurama closed his eyes in delight, holding back an animalistic purr. Her sent was calming, yet arousing at the same time and it stirred up the demon within him.

For once Kurama was glad that he was surrounded by noisy onlookers. If he hadn't been then he might have actually taken off with the young girl, like his primitive side wanted. _'Who and what are you, little one?'_ He silently wondered as the sirens of the ambulance grew louder and louder upon their approach. He was certain that she wasn't a demon or any other non human being, but her scent had a light undertone of a mammal, not so unlike himself. Not a predator, he quickly concluded. Her scent was too soft and subtle. The main scent was earthy like his own, so it wasn't a bird. It had to be a land mammal, one that was quiet, flighty, gentle…

He was unable to continue his train of thought, as the ambulance pulled up. The teeming, boisterous crowd parted to let the paramedics through. When one of the paramedics, an older man in his late thirties asked what happened Kurama told them she had a broken wrist and a few scrapes of her palms and knees. They checked her over thoroughly, before lifting her on the stretcher. Just before they went to close the doors and take off Kurama asked if he could go with her. After a few minutes of deliberation they reluctantly agreed.

The trip to the hospital was noisy, but Kurama didn't hear anything except the sporadic beating of the young girl's heart. His emerald eyes landed on the picture she was still clutching. There were three people in the frame. One was a pretty brown haired woman with sparkling blue eyes, who looked to be of American descent in the arms of a dark haired man with kind brown eyes holding the smiling woman around her waist. In the arms of the brown haired woman was a slightly younger and laughing version of the unconscious girl who was holding on to the picture.

Instantly he knew that it must be a family portrait, but he wondered why she had ran out into the middle of a busy street to get it, unless one or both of her parents were no longer alive. That thought made him frown and tenderly rub her cheekbone. That would explain the unusual smell of death she was letting off. It was light, barely noticeable at first, but it was there and only growing stronger as timed passed. For some strange reason the thought of the nameless girl dying distressed him. Usually he wouldn't care as much, but as soon as he had smelled her blood he had unknowingly at the time become deeply attached to her. He was already feeling possessive and that certainly was not good.

Reluctantly he pulled away from touching the girl and just watched her intently. Unknowing that his emerald eyes now had gold flecks scattered throughout his irises. It didn't take long before they reached the hospital and the girl was wheeled into a nearby room. Kurama thought it best if he stayed away from her for a little while, but he couldn't just up and leave her all together. The thought of her being alone worried him too much. _'What's wrong with me… why can't I stop thinking of her scent?'_

Curiosity was just the nature of a fox, but his emotions towards her were not. The more he smelled her, the more confused he became. Part of him wanted to steal her away and curl up beside her in a forest. But another part of him, a more primitive part, he was sure even Yōko found unnerving wanted to bite into her tender, creamy flesh and taste her blood. Something was more than a little wrong with him. He'd never had that particular urge before and he was just a little more than hesitant to ask the silver fox about it.

With a heavy sigh Kurama lifted his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, but a scent stopped him dead. He could practically taste the sweet, yet coppery liquid on his tongue. Emerald eyes snapped down to his hand, his eyes nearly bleed over to full gold at the sight. Her blood, fresh and still warm from contact with his skin was teasing him as it slowly trailed along his palm and down to his wrist. He took a shuddering breath at calm his frazzled nerves, but it only served to increase his bloodlust.

He stood there just staring at the blood for several minutes, trying to ignore the pushing at his conscious from the notorious ex- thief. _'What could it hurt? Just a small taste wouldn't hurt anything.'_ Kurama was unsure if he was thinking that or the fox. Perhaps they were both thinking along the same lines. But, he couldn't. It wasn't right to drink or taste human blood, especially since she was unaware and he was still partially-human.

'_The key to her mysterious scent lies within those warm drops. Just a small taste won't hurt. She'll never know. It'll be our little secret.'_ That was undoubtedly Yōko. Kurama frowned as the ancient fox's voice flittered into his mind, tempting him with the girl's mystery and making it seem like tasting her blood wasn't a sin or a crime. A soft noise, almost like a whimper left his lips. It was wrong, his human conscience yelled at him, but the smell of her blood was overpowering.

Subtly he lifted his bloody hand up to mouth level and made it look like he was resting his hand across his mouth. Before he divulged in the immoral sin his gold eyes scanned the hallway predatorily to make sure no one saw him commit the crime. A nurse passed by at the end of the hall, but took no notice of his tense form. When the clicking sound of the nurse's heels faded into the distance he took one last unsure glance at the crimson on his skin, before he slowly let his tongue lap at the liquid. As the blood touched his taste buds his eyes snapped shut and this time, he couldn't hold back a content purr.

All hesitancies' left him as he quickly rid his skin of the young girl's life essence with renewed vigor. She tasted just as good as she smelled. He could feel the sharp tips of Yōko's fangs brush against his tongue and another soft purr vibrated throughout his body. After all the blood was gone, it took a few minutes before his fangs and eyes returned to normal. His head dropped in shame, but he couldn't stop the contented, predatory smile that curled upon his lips. Now he knew why his inner demon stirred so restlessly. She was a fellow wild earthen being and prey.

"How suiting… little fawn," He whispered so only he or another demon could hear, as a doctor walked out of the room the young girl had been placed in. "You're the young man who called the ambulance, yes?" The older man asked when he stood in front of Kurama. "Yes, I saw most of the accident." Kurama nodded as the older man ran a hand through his graying black hair. "Thank you," The doctor held out a hand and Kurama politely shook the man's hand, wondering why the doctor was thanking him.

"That girl is a patient of mine, has been since birth." The doctor informed at seeing Kurama's confusion. "I've already called her Godmother, but if you'd like to visit her she is stable, nothing wrong with her other than her wrist being broke and scraped up palms and knees." Kurama nodded even though the doctor, who nametag said Shigeaki Hinohara was telling him things he already knew. But the part about calling her Godmother and not her mother had piqued his interest quite a bit.

"Ms Kazuhiro Faline is a recurring patient, as she was born mute and we are trying to find ways to help her through her… difference and the passing of her father." Kurama couldn't stop his eyes from widening. That was why she didn't scream, she couldn't, but that did little to answer his question as to why he heard her voice scream in his mind. But at least he knew a little more about the young girl, thanks to the ramblings of her doctor. If he hadn't been so curious, he would have berated the doctor for his lack of Doctor-Patient confidentiality.

"Thank you, I'll go see her now." Kurama shook hands with the doctor once more before entering the quiet hospital room. Still trying to keep a proper distance he didn't sit beside her bedside. But he stood as close as he dared, after a few moments he reached out to brush his fingertips against her face. But he abruptly pulled back and stepped over to the farthest corner of the room, when the sound of hurried footfalls and worried voices neared the door. Seconds later three females all but burst through the door and rushed to Faline's bedside.

The smallest one, reminded Kurama of a bubbly, very emotional driven Hiei. Perhaps it was due to her small stature or maybe it was the fierce fire that raged within her orange irises. Kurama didn't know but he could tell instantly that she had romantic feelings for the unconscious blonde, he could even smell it and it made him want to growl, but he forced the animal side of him away. It would only cause problems if that side of him had free reign right now.

The tallest teenager was a quiet, stern spiky haired girl. She seemed to be the calm ringleader, as it only took a soft touch to the shorter girl's shoulder to calm her down. Kurama could smell the protectiveness and regret washing over her as she gazed over Faline's still body. The third woman was shorter than the spiky haired teen but she was older. Kurama guessed that this woman was Faline's Godmother, as she bent over Faline's unmoving body and brushed away the girl's blonde bangs and tenderly kissed her forehead.

"Oh, baby, I'm so sorry. I-I should've been there for you, I should've known something was wrong," He heard the older woman whisper into Faline's ear, as tears threatened to fall from her eyes. The smell of salt was overpowering in the room, but only the small girl let her tears fall. After a few moments the three women settled into a somber quiet, none of them had acknowledged him yet, but he didn't mind. He just wanted to be near Faline as long as possible.

Three and a half hours passed, before the elder female acknowledged his presence. He could tell that all three were studying him, trying to break him down, but he just put up his barriers and they were at a loss. But the two teenage girls were not as fooled as the older woman. They seemed to sense that he was different, but he didn't mind them. It was a slim to none chance that they would find out his secret.

The Godmother politely introduced herself and they shared a small conversation, while the spiky haired teen scrutinized his every move. During the introduction Kurama sensed Faline's distress and when he concentrated he could see what was disturbing her, but he could do nothing while the three women were there. So he quickly, but politely excused himself from their company, leaving the seed of a sleeping plant in the room, only to return several minutes later when they were all asleep.

As he stood by her bedside he wondered how he could calm her down, without waking her. Giving into temptation he let his hands trail exploring-ly over her soft countenance. He felt her shiver and smiled, letting his mind slowly link to her's. Darkness engulfed him and he noticed that he couldn't hear, feel or see. So this was her pain, he frowned, before scenting her out with his nose. He had to be close to her in this void, otherwise it would never work.

He soon found her and did the only thing he could think of. He touched his conscious with her's, which might have been a mistake on his part, but they were already connected so he threw caution to the wind and spoke to her. Surprisingly his voice sounded clear and thankfully comforting. "You'll be all right. Rest and recover well, little fawn…"

He knew it wasn't much, but she immediately calmed and he left her mind. As he pulled himself back into his body he couldn't resist inhaling her intoxicating scent once more, before he left. He leaned down and touched her still eyelids softly, before gently nuzzling her hair breathing in deeply and purring. He didn't want to leave her like this. She was fragile, like a fawn. But he was the predator, sly and deceiving. With that thought in mind he forced himself away from her and glanced back over his shoulder to watch her as the door closed silently behind him.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six:

Behind a Smile

Aika silently peaked around the kitchen doorframe, a worried frown on her lips as she watched the three teenage girls in the living room. Seiki lay on her stomach by the couch adamantly chatting away with a big smile and her hands cradling her face, while Yuukan lay sprawled out on the couch looking half asleep and bored, but her half lidded brown eyes watched the two younger girls like a hawk. Faline sat on the floor with her immobile hands resting on her lap, her knees tucked neatly beneath her and a soft, genial smile on her lips as she listened to the latest gossip about any and everything from the energetic Seiki.

Usually Aika wouldn't have thought anything of such a typical display but something was wrong with Faline, she could feel it. Ever since she spontaneously woke from her coma two days ago, Faline hadn't acted any different from the norm. However instinctually Aika knew _something_ was wrong with her goddaughter, she just couldn't pinpoint _what_ the problem was. Of course Aika had asked Faline if something was bothering her, but the silent girl just shook her head and smiled. It was the same smile she had on her lips now. Aika's frown darkened before she returned to the kitchen to finish making lunch for the girls, her thoughts still on that smile.

"Hmm, Seiki-chan likes this outfit," The curly haired teen muttered aloud as she studied the picture in the magazine she was currently holding. Suddenly, Seiki sprang up from the floor and was by Faline's side with the magazine at the sandy haired girl's eye level. "What do you think Faline-chan? Do you think it would look good on me?" Seiki asked rapidly, her bright orange eyes flashing in uncontainable excitement. Yuukan rolled her eyes at the smaller girl's sudden burst of energy as Faline calmly took the magazine from the hyper teen to inspect the outfit further. After a moment Faline handed the magazine back and nodded with a smile, which made Seiki smile widely and grab her blonde haired friend in a tight embrace, carefully avoiding Faline's casted wrist.

Without letting go of Faline, Seiki turned her head so she could see the bored, sprawled out teen and poked her tongue out and made an obnoxious noise. "Seiki-chan told you it would look good, Yuukan-chan!" Yuukan lazily raised her hand and waved the small girl off. "Whatever, it's not like they make a size small or short enough for you anyways." The spiky haired girl replied with a long yawn, before she turned over on her side so she faced the TV and her friends. With the remote at her disposal Yuukan turned on the TV and instantly began flipping through the channels when the screen lit up with color. Seiki sniffed and poked her tongue out at the lazy teen before she once again immersed herself within her fashion and gossip magazines.

Unconsciously Faline's fingertips began to trace along the rough outer shell of her cast as she slipped into deep thought. Her doctor had said that it was a clean break so it should heal in six to eight weeks, with tenderness and some pain for possibly a month afterwards. She considered herself a bit lucky that she had broken her left wrist and not her right, as she was right handed, but the uncomfortable weight and immobility of the cast bugged her. She never noticed just how much she used her left hand until she couldn't anymore.

Ever since she had been released from the hospital Seiki and Yuukan had practically began to live with her, and Aika had become a lot more watchful, more protective. It was a kind gesture and Faline greatly appreciated their concern for her wellbeing but it was beginning to become a bit much. Faline knew they were more worried because of her sudden distancing. When she woke from her coma, Faline could remember nothing from the day of the accident except the voice and face of her rescuer, who had since began to invade her thoughts constantly.

She could hear his velvety voice whispering soft words to her almost constantly, though she was unable to understand most of them. She could see the vibrant intelligence of his emerald irises pierce though the dark of her dreams. He was like a living phantom: she could see him, hear him, even feel his very presence, but she was unable to touch him. Even in her dreams he was always just out of her reach. But he wasn't the only thing that had suddenly begun to invade her day dreams and night dreams.

Sometimes she found herself on the outskirts of a lush, wild forest bordering a blooming spring meadow, dressed in a soft magnolia spaghetti strap knee length gown. The forest was both mysterious and comforting, even with the light morning mist blanketing the entire area. She always found herself drawn to the small stream running through the meadow, where the wild flowers grew in abundance. Faline sat on the bank of the knee deep stream, her bare feet dipped into the lukewarm water and a white lily held delicately in her hands. Almost wistfully she would occasionally twirl the lily between her pointer finger and her thumb.

Time, it seemed, didn't exist in that world as she seemed to sit there with her feet in the water for hours without the sun or fog lifting. However the dream always happened the same way, with the most mysterious part happening next. In mid twirl, a soft zephyr swept the white lily out of her grip and carried it away. Faline promptly followed after the windswept flower and stopped at the edge of the forest where she found the lily lying innocently by the root of a large tree. She quickly bent down and scooped up the flower with a soft smile of her lips, only to freeze in mid motion when something silver swiftly moved behind a tree a few yards deeper into the forest.

Faline's smile slowly dropped from her soft lips, as curiosity and fear began to overtake her pervious happy calm, when the silver blur flashed behind another closer tree. The forest was silent for several moments, before the silver blur slowly poked its head around the tree and intelligent yet playful gold eyes locked with surprised aqua. Guardedly the large silver coated fox emerged from behind the tree, its eyes never once leaving Faline's as it confidently moved forward and sat on a medium-sized boulder a little more than two yards away. Its ears were perked forward in attentiveness as five long silky tails twitched anxiously, almost like a cat's.

Faline didn't question why the silver fox had five tails instead of the typical one, why he was so big, or the human-like intelligence that flashed in his beautiful golden eyes. No, she quickly corrected her thoughts those eyes were far too intelligent to be merely animal or human. There was an ancient wisdom flickering in those eyes that could only come from a very long life. The fox had to have lived more than twice her lifetime to have eyes like that, to hold such knowledge and deep pain, to be able to hide his every thought and emotion unless he so desired.

Not for the first time in her life, Faline cursed her inability to speak. She was still fearful of the majestic kitsune, but her curiosity had quickly overridden her fear. _'Please… don't run…'_ Her thoughts pleaded, as she slowly moved towards the immobile fox. Its silver ears twitched and flicked forward as if it heard her inner thoughts, but made no other movements as the silent girl neared. When Faline was an arm's length away from the silver fox she stopped, before she hesitantly reached out to touch the golden eyed kitsune. Intelligent eyes watched her every move carefully, as if questioning whether she would actually touch him or not.

Faline's pale fingertips stopped their progression just inches away from the fox's muzzle. Her hands were shaking as she brought the white lily in her right hand up to her heart. The fox stared at her for several minutes before giving her an almost human grin and touched its nose gently to her quivering palm. Faline smiled almost shyly as the fox began to nuzzle its head against her palm while purring softly at her touch. Faline gasped mutely when soft, husky words echoed though her mind. _'I won't leave you little fawn…'_ Faline's wide aqua eyes snapped to the fox only to see his gold eyes staring into hers, as if he had been to one to send those thoughts to her.

"Faline-chan, lunch is ready. Faline-chan, are you alright?" The aqua eyed girl snapped out of her dreams upon feeling her orange eyed friend touch her shoulder softly. Faline smiled and carefully, albeit clumsily signed that she was alright and that nothing was wrong. "Are you sure Faline-chan?" Seiki asked again, worry clouding her voice and eyes. Faline nodded and smiled again before she stood gracefully from the floor and headed towards the kitchen.

Seiki and Yuukan watched their friend leave with frowns on their faces, both knowing that Faline wasn't alright and neither liking the smile Faline had given them. That smile was wrong. It didn't reach her eyes, it wasn't her real smile. It was a smile that hid secrets and unfathomable pain. Plus Faline had been too distracted by something lately and the worst thing was that she wasn't telling anyone about it, choosing instead to keep everything to herself. Seiki's eyes began to water and she quickly wiped them away with her sleeve, before anyone could take notice.

"Don't worry," Yuukan whispered to the small girl with a sigh, her hand on the flamboyant teen's shoulder in a comforting gesture. "When she's ready, Faline will tell us what's wrong. Whatever's bothering her she thinks she needs to deal with it herself, so we have to trust her. But we also have to let her know that we'll always be there for her no matter what. Alright, midget?" The smaller girl sniffled, completely ignoring the taller teen's so-called affectionate nickname and nodded before the two followed their friend into the kitchen, where Aika and Faline were waiting. Seiki would trust in their friendship and let Faline deal with whatever was plaguing her alone, for now, but when the silent girl showed any signs of needing someone Seiki would be the first to help.

Miles away from the Hamasaki home, Kurama lay in his bed, his shining emerald eyes hidden beneath closed eyelids and his breathing soft and even. All of the lights in his modest home were off and all of the widows were covered, shadowing his lanky form in darkness, though the frown on his lips was clearly visible. He was feigning sleep and scolding himself for losing control and tasting Faline's blood. He hadn't had a good night's sleep since he left her in the hospital. He was restless and irritated and he knew why, but he wasn't going to let himself lose to his more primitive side.

He ached to see her, to touch her creamy pale skin, to take in her calmingly arousing scent. He longed to just be near her, even if she couldn't see him and he couldn't touch her. He could still taste her blood on his tongue. He felt like a wild animal caged in a zoo and he was doing it to himself. He might have helped to save her, but that was as far as it could go. She was practically a child, five years his junior and that was just his human age. She was also human while he was not, part of him maybe but not all of him. He wasn't human enough to be near her. She was safer away from him than she would be with him.

Kurama hissed aloud, his teeth grinding together as he curled into a fetal position clutching his middle. His own body was rejecting the distance he had forced between them. It wasn't that he didn't want to be with her, he just couldn't. She would die one day, be it either from old age, disease, or something else. His current body would die one day as well, but his truest form would take its place and live on for many more centuries, possibly even a few millennia. It was impossible for him to be near her even as a friend, but he longed for their closeness and it didn't help that he could feel most of her emotions and hear some of her thoughts. He even unconsciously touched her mind and sent her dreams, but it barely soothed his longing.

'_We need her… one nighttime visit won't hurt… lets go to her, she needs us… she wants to see us… just one time…'_ The sly voice of the fox echoed though his mind. Yōko had been bugging him ever since he had left her. At first the suggestions had been soft whispers, but now they were viciously snarled commands. The fox was pissed, to put it mildly and as payment he was causing the human as much pain as was possible. Even if they were essentially the same being, there was a major difference between them. It was almost like having a dual personality that could cause physical and mental pain.

'_I-I… I can't!'_ Kurama screamed at the angry fox, as tears leaked from his clenched eyes. Kurama knew he was in a world of pain for denying what they both really wanted, but he had to protect her. He had to protect his little fawn from himself, from the predator that lurked just beneath the surface of his human persona. "F-Faline," He softly whimpered her name aloud as the pain in his mind and body increased until his vision suddenly began to fade.


	8. Chapter 7

_**A/N: I am so incredibly sorry this has taken so long to get posted, but I hope you all like this chapter. :) **_

_**And thank you for so much for hanging in there despite my long and many absences.**_

**_-SugarLandBabyGirl_**

* * *

Chapter Seven:

What's In a Name

Faline cautiously peaked around the corner of the doorway as her eyes searched for any movement and her ears strained for the softest whisper of sound. When she concluded that the coast was clear the silent teen tiptoed across the hall and silently slipped out the front door unnoticed by her godmother who was snoozing comfortably on the living room couch. Faline didn't breathe a sigh of relief until she was a block away from Aika's house, but when she did a soft smile curved on her lips and she inhaled the fresh evening air. Fortunately only Aika was there today, instead of all three of her guardians so Faline's escape plan worked out. Yuukan and Seiki were absent due to Yuukan having to go out of town with her parents for a few hours and Seiki had more chores, but Faline was relieved. All three of them stuck to her like paper to glue and stuck in the house for four stifling days and after a while she couldn't take it anymore.

Faline strolled around the city streets for a while with no real destination in mind, until she came upon a hauntingly familiar place by pure coincidence. A cold chill shot straight down her spine and she paled, as her heart began to hammer painfully in her chest. The dark skid marks were still visible on the road, but other than that all evidence of her near death experience had vanished. Her memories were still a muddled mess that she couldn't make much sense of. Stunned she slowly sank to the ground to catch her breath and regain her bearings, uncaring that she was perched on the rough sidewalk and so very close to the passing vehicles. She sat there for almost fifteen full minutes, her eyes wide and her breathing ragged and speedy. At long last Faline's head dropped, her chin resting on her cloth covered breastbone as tears of realization and forlornness fell silently from her eyes.

'_Is crying all that I can do? It's all I ever do anymore… no wonder everyone treats me like glass… maybe this is why she left, because she couldn't mourn without me getting in the way, needing to comfort me all the time when she was hurting just as much… I'm sorry, momma.'_ Faline finally moved. Her motions slow as she stood to her feet and brushed her bangs away from her puffy and watery eyes with her unbroken arm. This time she looked both ways and waited until the coast was clear before she crossed the street in the opposite direction of her house. Her destination was someplace else but it was just as peaceful and nostalgic. It was a short ten minute walk from the crossing to her destination: a relatively small but beautiful park. Faline had many fond memories of her childhood playing at the park. Her father was a professional landscaper and had helped decorate the park before she was born, but afterwards he took her and her mother there almost every day.

With a sad smile Faline eased herself down onto a swing and began to slowly swing back and forth. The motion was soothing and the air cooled her flushed and damp face. It was quiet there, but not as peaceful as she thought it would be. Something was amiss, but she couldn't understand why. After a few moments of watching a pair of small passerine birds fly around each other playfully she realized that despite her initial desire for freedom and fresh air, she was lonely. With a defeated sigh, Faline slumped against the cool metal chain holding the swing up and closed her eyes. A warm gentle wind began to blow, as the songbirds sang their cheery tunes from flowery branches in the surrounding trees. Faline inhaled the sweet scent of nature's summer perfume and instantly a strange, but not unwelcome calming sensation befell upon her confused mind and stressed body.

Kurama blinked slowly, lost in his own thoughts as he passed several amorous young couples. His distracted thoughts were fixated on the one thing they had been on since he had first set eyes on her. _'Faline,'_ Kurama's bright emerald eyes flickered upwards as her name passed through his thoughts. Despite all the odds stacked against him he had miraculously managed to keep his distance from her, though not without consequence. Yoko had stopped bombarding him with threats and pain, and instead had gone completely silent, which concerned the redhead more than the fox's fury. With the silver-haired fox subdued, he had managed to get a much needed and appreciated full night's sleep, and didn't look as bad as he had only the day before. The dark circles were now faint and almost gone, and much to his delight his calm temperament had returned to normal, as he had been slightly irritable the last few days thanks to the fox.

As much as he had pondered over the strangeness of the mute girl, he was still unable to figure out what was happening to him, or even why. Not knowing anything was frustrating, but what was worse was the connection they had. He often heard snippets of her private thoughts run through his mind. They were usually, but not always accompanied by slivers of what she was feeling at the time. More often than not he was bombarded by her emotions only, though only a few were so strong that he couldn't ignore them no matter how hard he tried. The strongest, most tangible of them was fear, accompanied by a large dose of sorrow. Almost half an hour ago she had been highly apprehensive and fairly excited, for what reasons he did not know, but her rollercoaster emotions shifted not long afterwards, and now he felt nothing from her, it was as if she had dropped off the face of the planet. Despite his more rational feelings, restlessness and a twinge of fear reared its head at the loss of contact, but he had other priorities and couldn't search her out like he badly wanted to.

"… So, Keiko totally freaked out on me and kicked me out of the house when I told her that I had to go back to demon world for a while. I can't figure out why she's so angry. The last time this happened she was mostly alright with it." Yusuke's heavily disgruntled tone broke Kurama out of his reverie. The dark haired boy looked as disgruntled as he sounded and Kurama sudden remembered that he was supposed to be in the middle of a conversation instead of daydreaming about Faline. "Is that why you wanted us to meet?" Kurama asked as an amused smirk twitched at the corners of his lips. The dark haired male grunted with a reluctant nod. "I'm not supposed to go back until the day after tomorrow, but Keiko took all of the spare keys… so I was wondering if you'd let me stay with you?" Yusuke asked gruffly, but Kurama could see the pleading in his brown eyes as they slid to watch for his reaction.

Normally Kurama wouldn't have hesitated to agree as he owed Yusuke a great debt even now, but considering his instability to properly maintain his human guise and personality as of late he had to seriously think about it. "C'mon Kurama," Yusuke's tone turned beseeching and Kurama knew the ex-spirit detective was going to try to bribe him in some form or fashion. "I'll treat ya today and buy my own food, heck I'll even sleep on the sofa!" Kurama had to crack a smile regardless of how desperately he wanted his problem to stay secret. _'Surely he won't notice anything suspicious in two days.' _Kurama mused to himself and the quiet fox that unsurprisingly made not reply. With an internal sigh, Kurama turned to the anxious Yusuke, gave him a small smile and agreed to something that he felt might come to regret sooner rather than later. Yusuke couldn't have been happier as he whooped loudly, before he suddenly pulled the momentarily stunned redhead into a wild side hug. Kurama laughed heartily at Yusuke's antics and pulled away from him before any of the spectators could assume something completely false. Unfortunately that had happened more than once.

"Thanks Kurama, I really owe you one for this." Yusuke grinned. Kurama just nodded his head, wondering if he really made the right decision, even though he couldn't take it back now. "For helping me out what do ya say to me buying dinner tonight?" The brown eyed male asked with a close eyed grin. Kurama opened his mouth to reply when a sudden, heavy emotion slammed into his consciousness causing Yoko to once again stir restlessly. _'Little fawn…'_ "Ah, that would be fine Yusuke," Kurama forced himself to remain calm on the outside while it felt as if he was being torn to pieces on the inside. "If you wouldn't mind, I have someplace else I need to be and I'm afraid I might run a bit late." Kurama told Yusuke with a half-hearted apologetic smile. "Sure, no problem," The younger male shrugged. "Go do whatever it is you gotta do, I'll see you later." He returned with a slight wave of his hand. Kurama thanked him, before Yusuke disappeared around the corner bend of the street. Kurama watched him leave and habitually made sure that he wasn't going to be followed before he turned around and let his instincts guide him to his distressed fawn.

It didn't take long to reach her, but to Kurama it seemed to take a lifetime as he had to walk there so as to not seem suspicious to any he passed. With little to no care of his current location Kurama silently walked into the park, noticing that was exactly what it was upon seeing the various playground equipment spread around the grassy field. Her intoxicating scent was particularly strong on the breeze and blended well with nature's own. Yōko purred softly and Kurama felt a pleasant shiver race down his spine. Kurama knew that he wasn't the only one wishing to willingly get lost in that scent; it was just so incredibly addictive. He already felt his heart start to race from anticipation. He didn't know how to feel. He was almost giddy at the prospect of seeing her awake and well and so close-up, yet at the same time he was nervous to see her in such a state as he might have to speak to her and was strangely at a loss for words. When he finally spotted her his who body froze up and he saw, heard, and smelled nothing but her. He was completely enraptured by her.

He watched as her loose hair floated behind her in the breeze, as she swung gently back and forth on the swing. Her striking light aqua eyes were hidden and her dark lashes delicately brushed against her soft skin, fluttering slightly every once in a while. She was dressed as he had never seen her before, save for in his dreams. She wore a multi-colored dress-like top, with spaghetti straps, the hem fell to mid-thigh and she was wearing light blue roll-up Capri jeans with white ballet flats. It wasn't exactly what he pictured in his dreams, but it seemed to fit her just as well as the dress from his dream had. The only thing wrong with her appearance was the bulky cast upon her arm. It simply didn't belong there, and yet it didn't take away from her beauty. At the shortened distance her unknowingly output loneliness was oppressive. His fingers twitched and he balled his hands into fists to keep them steady and to collect his wits, before he forced himself to move forward and towards the mysterious object of his and Yoko's obsession.

His footsteps were light and habitually cautious as he neared her. She didn't seem aware of his presence, yet, and on some level he was thankful for it. He was so close now; her scent enveloped him in a light blanket of aromas that had him wanting more. He stopped a polite distance away from her, not wanting to seem intrusive or scare her as his heart thumped violently in his chest threatening to steal his breath. Now that he was so close he was at a loss of what to say to her. Would she remember them, or even want to see them, he wondered with a frown, completely unaware that he was starting to think in terms of him _and_ Yōko and not just one or the other. Yōko growled angrily in protest. _'Of course she does. How could she forget the ones who saved her life and the dreams? She's the one calling to us, she wants us, needs us.'_ Kurama blinked forcing the gold to recede from taking over his emerald eyes, before he opened his mouth and spoke. "May I sit by you?" He questioned politely, yet he hated the husky, breathy undertone he was certain she would notice. It sounded so deprived to his ears.

Light aqua eyes snapped open upon hearing his voice. Kurama watched with subdued awe as the glowing orbs widened and a soft pink blush dusted her pale cheeks. She bit her bottom lip and gave him an embarrassed smile, before she nodded her head in silent reply. He returned her smile with his own as he sat down next to her. After a moment of silence, her turned to her and introduced himself. "I'm Minamino Shuichi." Faline's eyes flickered over his face and he saw a look of recognition flash across her face that made the fox in him purr in delight. _'I know you… you're the one who helped me the other day.'_ She signed with a shy, thankful smile. _'Thank you, Minamino-san. I'm Kazuhiro Faline and it's nice to meet you.'_ Kurama smiled. At such a close proximity he could hear her thoughts clearly and understand the meaning of her signing even though it was hindered by the cast. "You're welcome, and it's nice to officially meet you, Faline." He replied hoping that she didn't take offence at the lack of honorific; he just couldn't bring himself to use one, as 'chan' seemed too diminutive, and 'san' was just too polite.

Faline paused noticing his over formality and stared at him for a moment, before she gave a shy grin of acceptance. Kurama silently debated with himself, before he spoke next. The words left his lips, cleverly disguised as a suggestion. "You can use my nickname, Kurama if you like, without an honorific, if it doesn't bother you." Faline once again worried her bottom lip as she thought about his suggestion, unknowing that it was more of a plea. He wanted to hear that name come from her, even if it couldn't roll off her tongue, just hearing it from her thoughts would be pleasing enough. _'Only if it's alright with you…'_ She paused, hesitant to be so familiar with a stranger but compelled by reasons unknown to accept it. _'… Kurama,'_ Kurama suppressed a quiver as her soft voice, muted only to those with ears, echoed through his mind bringing sensations one usually never experienced from such innocent things. Even Yōko was momentarily placated, despite it not being _his_ name spoken, instead it was _their_ name. It was at that moment that Kurama realized just how deep their connection was and for the life of him he couldn't have cared less that it was a suspicious occurrence.


End file.
